Bill Tieleman is one of BC's best known communicators, political commentators and strategists.
Bill writes a politics column Tuesdays in 24 Hours newspaper and The Tyee online magazine.
Bill has been Communications Director in the B.C. Premier's Office and at the BC Federation of Labour.
Bill owns West Star Communications, a consulting firm providing strategy and communication services for labour, business, non-profits and government.

Friday, August 15, 2014

Justin Trudeau should avoid the "help" of Marc and Jodie Emery to get Liberal Party elected on marijuana legalization

Jodie and Marc Emery

Support from the
fickle Prince and Princess of pot could burn the federal Liberal brand, send Trudeau dreams up in smoke

The self-proclaimed "Prince and Princess of Pot" --
marijuana legalization activists Marc and Jodie Emery -- plan to help federal
Liberal leader Justin Trudeau, but that may instead make his chances of
becoming prime minister go up in smoke.

Marc Emery is scheduled to get out of a Louisiana jail and
return to Canada today after a stiff five-year sentence for dealing marijuana
seeds into America by mail.

Meanwhile, Jodie Emery anxiously awaits word from a Liberal
Party of Canada, ahem, "green light" committee on whether she can run
for Trudeau's team in the Vancouver East riding against veteran New Democrat MP
Libby Davies, herself a champion of decriminalization for years.

The Emerys also announced they will exact "political
revenge" on Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper by touring
across Canada, urging voters to support Trudeau in the 2015 election because he
promises to legalize marijuana.

But Trudeau should immediately distance him from the Emerys and
their "joint" campaign. Why? Because they're one-trick ponies on the
single issue of marijuana, and regularly change political stables to further
their cause without any loyalty whatsoever to either the party or its leader.

They've backed the Marijuana Party, the NDP and the Greens, but
now it's the Liberals.

Libs were burned before

Helpful? Last year Justin Trudeau said Marc Emery was "flat out
lying" about claims he had smoked marijuana with Justin four or
five times on several different occasions.

"I've never done it except with people I know and trust.
And Marc Emery was someone I met but certainly not someone I ever thought of
smoking with," Trudeau said in Aug. 2013. "I only met Marc Emery once
in my life, so that's a lot of smoking with him that I apparently did."

Emery publicly apologized last year, but still claims he smoked
up with Trudeau on one occasion. Trudeau continues to deny it.

In 2008, Emery reportedly claimed
he struck a deal with the late New Democratic Party leader Jack Layton to bring
Marijuana Party members and pro-pot supporters to the NDP and offer up candidates
to help with an NDP promise to decriminalize the drug.

Then-Layton spokesman Brad Lavigne said: "The New
Democratic Party has made no such deal with any other party or with any
individual... This is nonsense, absolute nonsense."

Layton himself later denied
the allegations. "There never was any kind of a deal. There was no
commitment, no relationship," he said, while noting the party had favoured
decriminalization for years and was asked about it in the 2004 and 2006
elections.

Emery's comments about Trudeau were nasty, since he denounced
the MP for voting for Bill C-15, which would have imposed mandatory minimum
sentences for drug offences, including marijuana.

Emery said in a 2009 video
because Trudeau "smoked with me four or five times" that "it
really pisses me off when I see Justin Trudeau, who took big gaggers with me,
is in Parliament actually voting for Bill C-15. What a fucking hypocrite."

All of which makes one question Jodie Emery's candidacy, given Trudeau
thinks her husband lied about him in a way that hurt Liberals.

Inconsistent, except on cannabis

What's more, Jodie is anything but consistent politically, other
than campaigning for cannabis.

She twice ran for the Green Party provincially. In 2013 in
Vancouver-West End, she placed third behind winner New Democrat MLA Spencer
Chandra Herbert and BC Liberal Scott Harrison.

In 2009, she came in third in Vancouver-Fraserview, losing to BC
Liberal Kash Heed in a contest where Elections BC later fined Heed's campaign
$8,000 for overspending
but did not order a byelection. Emery's 904 votes were greater than the margin
New Democrat candidate Gabriel Yiu lost by to Heed.

She also ran twice for the B.C. Marijuana Party in 2005 and a
2008 byelection.

While Marc Emery was indeed shafted when the federal
Conservative government extradited him to a tough prison sentence in the U.S.
rather than charge him in Canada, Emery knew all along he was poking a stick at
a tiger and aiming for marijuana martyrdom.

Canadians would be outraged if the U.S. refused to extradite an
American illegally mailing drugs or guns into our country. Emery, however, sees
himself as a faultless hero.

"This is an epic struggle between good and evil. You
couldn't pick a more virtuous person to go up against evil," Emery said
of himself before being extradited.

Despite supporting the NDP, Greens and now Liberals at various
points, Emery identifies most closely as a right-wing libertarian, not a social
democrat.

"My mentor is Ayn Rand," he told The Georgia Straight
in 2007, talking about the author of Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead.

The Emerys can make one claim that won't be disputed. Their
efforts and those of thousands of others have begun a process of marijuana
legalization in the United States, starting in Washington and Colorado States,
and likely Canada in the future.

But
their self-promotional and dubious approach isn't one any party should accept.

My comment is plain and simple, legalize that product and sell in ONLY Govt liquor stores. Private vendors can not be trusted as sales to minors can be dictated by the profit motive. In continuing with my thoughts, why not have one stop shopping for all products that should be regulated and taxed.Tobacco, adult beverages, grass smokes and even hookers. The revenue obtained would empty the public debt file. Why should the criminal element benefit. Would it not be safer for all parties to these vices to be some how4112 benefit by a safe store.

The Emery's are to be avoided by all political parties. They have only one goal and that is the enrichment of themselves. Any forays into the political arena are more to do with promoting their "brand" than a political "brand". They are just too out there for mainstream voters. any party which includes them will find themselves on the loosing end come the next election. Oh, this might work, have them run for the Conservatives.

I just read the postings by The Satan as in Great and the E.L.F.who also provides great comment.I found the two to be intelligent individuals and identified themselves with a handle. I wish to thank them for taking the time to share. I will only add that I mostly agree.

"If the riding nominates Jodie Emery then she should run in that riding, it's called democracy folks. "

There's no guarantee she would make it past the nomination, even if she does make it past that, she certainly wouldn't get past NDP MP Libby Davies.

"Justin and the other leaders need to stay out of each ridings nomination decisions."

True, but Justin has not. He has favoured the FN Chief who is the candidate in Vancouver Granville so he's already been dictatorial.

"Hopefully Marc Emery will (exercise some sensi-bility and)stay out of her campaign and conduct his own awareness campaign separately."

That's not going to happen.

Marc also wants pot legalized so he can cash in big time in the sales.

He's also naive. Even if the Liberals win government, the legalization of Pot is not automatic. It requires legislation, and Marc may not like how the legalization eventually comes out, the level of taxes imposed and as to whom and by which regulations it is sold.

He'll keep whining and complaining until this is to his and only his satisfaction.

There are a couple ways of getting rid of leeches. One is to use salt, but out in the wilderness one would likely find that scarce. The other is to use your own urine. If Trudeau is smart, he should say piss off Emery (if only silently). It's fine if Trudeau wants to work towards legalization, but stay clear of the leech. He will bring Trudeau down and Harper and Conservatives would like nothing more than for Justin to fall for his bating. The moment I saw him on the National/CBC the other night and basically saying he and Trudeau should work together .. and the MSM have been running with this ever since, I thought BAD NEWS for the Libs. They are dead if they take the bate. Bill, seriously, you may have some influence over any of us .. write to Justin and let him know the seriously flawed mistake he will make if he falls for Marc Emery's bate. It's only wishful thinking, but I'm hoping the MSM soon gets tired of Emery, unlikely though, he's the latest news maker, he's loving it, and he's doing his best to make it all political.

I just read the last two comments. Both are very interesting.However, I do not know if they support the legalization of grass or do not. All I can gather is the fact they do not support the Emerys and as such are against weeds. Now, I do not like weeds in my garden but would support the liberal plan to liberalize the law. Controls as applies to the Liquor would be beneficial in my humble.

"Bill, seriously, you may have some influence over any of us .. write to Justin and let him know the seriously flawed mistake he will make if he falls for Marc Emery's bate. It's only wishful thinking, but I'm hoping the MSM soon gets tired of Emery, unlikely though, he's the latest news maker, he's loving it, and he's doing his best to make it all political."

Bill doesn't have any influence within the federal Liberals. Bill is NDP.

and face facts, one of the reason why Emery wants pot legalized is so that he can start up a pot selling franchise and make millions from the fools who buy from him.

Bill Tieleman and Senator Larry Campbell, former Vancouver mayor

Jim Sinclair, Cindy Oliver, Ken Georgetti and Bill Tieleman

Bill Tieleman's coverage of the Basi-Virk/BC Legislature Raid Case praised by other journalists:

"This outstanding piece of journalism, in The Tyee, is the work of a journalist who has been deeply involved with this issue from the start and this article should be passed on as far and wide as possible."

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- Mike Smyth, columnist, The Province

"The Basi-Virk case....you’ve probably sat through more of these hearings and gone through more of the files and written about it than any other journalist in the province."

- Bill Good, host, The Bill Good Show, CKNW/Corus Radio Network

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- Paul Willcocks, columnist, the Victoria Times-Colonist

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In another bizarre twist to a story with no shortage of them, Mr. Tieleman went to work one day in December only to discover his office had been ransacked. Bookcases had been tipped over and papers strewn, but nothing was missing.

To top it off, a press kit for the self-published novel The Raid, written by a retired military officer in Metchosin and featuring on its cover a photograph from the 2003 police raid, had been left in a conspicuous place."

- Tom Hawthorn, columnist, The Globe and Mail

Nobody has followed the Basi-Virk affair over its past five years with greater diligence than local journalist, Bill Tieleman....Tieleman deserves our thanks, a fistful of journalism awards and some merit citation for citizenship.